IBM to monitor UAE traffic

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Reckless driving by speed-hungry motorists in the United Arab
Emirates is responsible for one of the world's highest levels of
traffic deaths and injuries.

Today, IBM Corp said it was hired by the government to design a
traffic monitoring system that it hopes can reduce such wrecks.

IBM announced a four-year, $US125 million (97.5 million)
deal with the UAE to design a custom traffic management system in
this country, which has grown at a blistering pace over the past
few years.

IBM says the deal is the largest in automotive information
technology history and will provide authorities with capabilities
to monitor dangerous driving behavior and respond to
emergencies.

The monitoring system is based on a computerized device, similar
to the so-called black box found in airplanes, that will be
installed tens of thousands of vehicles starting next year, IBM
said.

When a car goes above the speed limit, the device gives the
driver a warning and sends data on the way the car is being driven
to authorities, using a combination of microprocessors, advanced
global positioning satellite tracking and other wireless
communications to capture, analyze and deliver data via a wireless
network.

It is not clear whether authorities in the UAE would issue
legislation to make installing the device compulsory. Officials
were not immediately available for comment.

IBM said the country's 2 million drivers were responsible for
one of the worst traffic safety records in the world. According to
government traffic studies cited by the computer giant, one person
is injured every two hours, and one person dies approximately every
15 hours on the UAE's roads.

Government officials were not able to confirm the figures on
Thursday, but driving has become a hair-raising experience, due to
motorists' aggressive driving and disregard of speed limits and
laws. In Dubai, a major construction campaign has exacerbated the
problem, sending thousands of heavy trucks onto already jammed
streets and highways.

In a statement, IBM said "the device will monitor the speed of
the moving vehicle and compare it to the defined speed limit on
each street. If the car exceeds the limit, the device sends out a
warning message to the driver."

It will also allow police to monitor dangerous driving and
respond to emergencies.

A local company, CERT Telematics, the local contractor, said it
plans to introduce tens of thousands of the devices.

"The data we collect, faster, more effectively, will help with
speed detection, emergency cases, navigation and traffic
management," said Tayeb Kamali, chief executive officer of CERT
Telematics.

He said the devices could be customised based on each driver's
needs, adding that the company was in contact with authorities in
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to introduce the same system there. Those
countries, too, are beleaguered by aggressive driving and high
accident rates.